The latest instalment in the Divergent series, Allegiant, has failed so hard in its first weekend that the budget for the next movie has already been slashed. The 3rd film in the young adult dystopian series, opened in cinemas with an estimated $29.1 million in US box office takings. Although that doesn't sound too terrible, compared to the first two films comfortably surpassing the $50 million mark in the same amount of time, it makes Allegiant the lowest opening weekend of the franchise by an absolute mile. As a result, it looks like the last film in the Divergent series will now have to bear the cost of this severe shortfall, with a source telling The Hollywood Reporter that several million dollars are being cut from it's budget. Because yes, Lionsgate still have another film to go before this whole series can be put behind them. Ascendant, the second part of the finale, is still set to be released in Summer 2017. Meaning that it's already going to be competing with Paramount's World War Z 2, Universal's The Mummy reboot, Marvel's Spider-man standalone, and DC's Wonder Woman outing. If hopes weren't low enough for Ascendant already, Allegiant's takings will have set off plenty of alarm bells. Precisely where these budget cuts will fall hasn't been confirmed yet, but at the very least audiences should expect less special effects and possibly even a shorter running time. Well, every cloud. Divergent fans, why do you think this installment hasn't lived up to its predecessors? Let us know in the comments below.
